NCERT Solutions for Class 8 Geography Chapter 1

Resources: Question Answers

8 Geography Chapter 1 Resources Solutions

Important Terms on Resources

Types of Resources: Resources are generally classified into natural, human made and human.

Natural Resources

Resources that are drawn from Nature and used without much modification are called natural resources. The air we breathe, the water in our rivers and lakes, the soils, minerals are all natural resources. Many of these resources are free gifts of nature and can be used directly. In some cases tools and technology may be needed to use a natural resource in the best possible way.

Renewable resources are those which get renewed or replenished quickly. Some of these are unlimited and are not affected by human activities, such as solar and wind energy. Yet careless use of certain renewable resources like water, soil and forest can affect their stock. Water seems to be an unlimited renewable resource. But shortage and drying up of natural water sources is a major problem in many parts of the world today.

More to Know

Non-renewable resources are those which have a limited stock. Once the stocks are exhausted it may take thousands of years to be renewed or replenished. Since this period is much more than human life spans, such resources are considered non-renewable. Coal, petroleum and natural gas are some examples.

Actual resources are those resources whose quantity is known. These resources are being used in the present. The rich deposits of coal in Ruhr region of Germany and petroleum in the West Asia, the dark soils of the Deccan plateau in Maharashtra are all actual resources.

Natural resources are classified into different groups depending upon their level of development and use; origin; stock and distribution.

On the basis of their development and use resources can be classified into two groups, actual resources and potential resources.

Human Resources

People can make the best use of nature to create more resources when they have the knowledge, skill and the technology to do so. That is why human beings are a special resource. Education and health help in making people a valuable resource. People are human resources. Improving the quality of people’s skills so that they are able to create more resources is known as human resource development.